


Changing of the Seasons

by MikeWritesThings



Category: Apex Legends (Video Games)
Genre: Awkward Flirting, Background Relationships, Developing Relationship, F/F, Flirting, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Humor, Magic, Minor Character Death, Useless Lesbians, its rampart she's the useless lesbian
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-12
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-18 08:13:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29855148
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MikeWritesThings/pseuds/MikeWritesThings
Summary: "You are the Fall Maiden," Natalie said, deadly serious. Like it was some grand thing.Ramya blinked. "The fuck's that."(or: when she's suddenly gifted powers that she doesn't want, Ramya finds herself an unwilling participant in something much greater than modding weapons in the city—but there's a girl who might be kinda worth it.)
Relationships: Crypto | Park Tae Joon/Octane | Octavio Silva, Loba Andrade/Bangalore | Anita Williams, Rampart | Ramya Parekh/Wattson | Natalie Paquette
Comments: 3
Kudos: 12





	Changing of the Seasons

**Author's Note:**

> hello tiny rampart x wattson nation that hardly exists. ive decided u have all been starving for too long. here u go

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me to me : stop starting new fics you have like 50 to update
> 
> me to me: but . but arcsparks

Getting chased by a monster was inconvenient, but trees with thick trunks and low-hanging branches proved to be even more of an annoyance than the creature snapping at her heels—some beast with rows of sharp teeth and a grudge.

Ramya weaved in and out of the trees, letting out little huffs of annoyance every time she nearly ran face-first into one due to the forest’s density. This deep inside it, the foliage above blocked out the light of the sky, guiding her further into darkness with every hop over bulging tree roots and tangled brambles. 

“Y’know, mate, I get the feelin’ you’re mad at me,” Ramya said as she ran a circle around a thick oak, causing the creature to stumble, having not expected her sudden turn. She ran in the direction she’d been coming from, because she wasn’t an idiot _;_ running deeper into the forest was _not_ a good idea. “Was it something I said?”

The thing just snarled, and when she glanced back, she saw slobber dripping from its jowls.

“Or maybe I just look tasty. That’s fine. I take that as a compliment.”

Ramya sprinted, sweat dripping down her forehead as she headed back for the village. Was it a good idea to lead the thing right into a bunch of people? Nah, but she didn’t have any weapons, and chances were there was probably a Huntsman on duty to take it out. If not...well, she could get her hands on some scrap and fashion a blade. See, Ramya, you’re such a good planner! Why, thank you, Ramya!

Trampling through thick undergrowth, she reached behind her to adjust her ponytail, which had loosened during her run. She didn’t like her hair getting loose; it always ended up at the corners of her mouth or sticking to the back of her neck, even after she’d gotten that undercut, and...

Her foot snagged on something, and she went tumbling with a loud “ _shit!_ ”

Her hands having been raised, she was able to shield her nose from breaking as she landed face-first on the ground, rolling over a couple of times. Her shirt got caught on some spiky plants she didn’t know the names of, tearing little holes into the fabric as she came to a stop. 

Groaning, she looked over herself, checking for injury. Luckily, her Aura hadn’t broken, leaving her unharmed—the thing bearing down on her now, though, was probably gonna break it anyway.

A great black beast with white spikes and glowing red eyes glared down at her hatefully, its teeth bared. She didn’t know the exact name of it, but it was bear-like, a huge mass of...whatever the fuck these things were made of. She didn’t know _what_ , exactly. Not anything a _living_ thing had, that was for certain—not skin, not fur, and not hair.

Ramya wanted to scramble away, not keen on dying today (or any day, for that matter) but her foot had gotten trapped by something. She tried to tug herself out of it with grit teeth as the creature approached, a haunting growl coming from deep inside.

“You sure are taking your sweet time, aren’t you?” Ramya groaned as she reached forward to grab at whatever had her unable to move her foot, but then the thing was leaping at her, and she physically recoiled with a shout.

With a sudden _whoosh_ , a long, whip-like object made of metal lashed out, striking the beast. It howled in pain, shifting its hate-filled gaze from Ramya to who—or what—ever was behind her. It then charged past her, clearly going for its new target.

“Oh thank the gods,” Ramya muttered to herself as she reached down to break her foot free. “I’ll pray more often. _Swear_ it this time.”

She looked behind her as she finally managed to get herself free, seeing a short woman with a massive amount of curly blonde hair standing there, holding a whip. Her green eyes were narrowed at the monster, but they shifted to Ramya as she stared at this mysterious woman with a gaping mouth.

“Run!” The woman shouted. Ramya didn’t need to be told twice. She got to her feet and started sprinting in the direction of the village again. Okay, so her plan had _kind of_ worked—it seemed that a Huntress had heard the commotion and come to her aid. Kudos to you, Ramya! Your ideas never fail!

She didn’t _keep_ running, though—she slowed to a stop at a safe distance, crouching behind a thicket of bushes to watch the Huntress in action. Living in the safe boundaries of the city, she'd never really seen a Huntsman in action, so now was her chance. She’d always figured they’d be cool to watch, and this lady was proving her right.

Blondie flipped over the beast as it charged at her again, landing on its back and using its momentum to leap up again. She twisted mid-air, bringing her whip down on it, and it gave yet another howl. She wore a stark white jacket and pants, and moved quickly, so soon she was little more than a white blur against the dense greens and darks of the forest. 

Ramya grinned as she watched Blondie wrap her whip around the dark belly of the creature, yanking it back like it was a dog on a leash. The other woman swung it over her shoulder in a display of strength, sending it crashing to the ground before fading into nothing but black dust. She’d killed it.

Was it really _that_ easy to kill those things? Man, Huntsmen suddenly seemed a _lot_ less cool if that was all it took. Sure, it had been cool to watch, but Ramya had thought there would be a little more...pizazz. She hadn’t even broken her Aura.

She watched Blondie dust her spotless white jacket off, looking unbothered, and stepped out from behind the bushes, planning to just walk back to the village now that the excitement was over—but then she saw a pair of red eyes glaring, twenty feet in front of her, and Blondie hadn’t noticed.

“H—” Ramya cleared her throat, startling forward as she shouted, “Hey!”

Blondie looked up at her with wide eyes, clearly surprised by her presence, and _fuck_ , that thing had emerged from the trees now and she hadn’t noticed, and it was barreling straight for her. Ramya lunged towards Blondie right as the older woman finally looked over her shoulder, coming face-to-face with yet another beast—before Ramya was plowing into her, knocking her to the ground, right out of the way of the monster.

Ramya groaned as she rolled onto her side, her ribs aching from the way she’d landed, Blondie was already back on her feet; she could hear the sounds of her whip slashing through the air again. She managed to stand back up right as Blondie killed the second creature, its dying cries fading into silence.

Blondie turned to face Ramya, panting, her hands on her hips. She looked Ramya up and down, as if sizing her up.

“That was dumb," she finally said.

“You’re _welcome_ for saving your life,” Ramya huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. 

“No, you’re welcome for me saving _your_ life.” Blondie smiled, before looking back at where the beast had once stood. “Any more of these things chasing you?”

“Not that I’m aware.” Ramya used her tail to gesture towards the village, and didn’t miss the way Blondie’s eyes focused on it. “Can we get going before anything else tries to kill us, though?"

"Don't think you could save me again, then?" Blondie asked cheekily.

"I probably could, but then I'd get tired."

The older woman placed her whip on her belt, before approaching Ramya and giving her a pat on the shoulder. There was a spark in her eyes.

“I like your moxie, kid."

She then turned her back on her and started marching back to the village. Ramya watched her, debating with herself on just walking back with the lady in silence, before curiosity got the better of her and she jogged a little to fall into step beside her.

“So...you a Huntress?” Ramya asked.

“Yup,” Blondie said, keeping her eyes straight ahead. “Man-eater and Grimm-slayer is how I’d describe myself.”

“Grimm, huh?” Ramya glanced over her shoulder just to make absolutely sure that no more were following her. “So _that’s_ what them bastards look like.”

The other woman scoffed. “You’re not from around here, are you?”

“Nope!” Ramya said, popping the ‘ _p_ ’. “I’m from Vale, but came out here to visit a cousin.”

She watched Blondie glance at her tail again out of the corner of her eye. “Sorry if this sounds accusatory, but there are no Faunus in this village.”

“Eh, we’re not blood-related.” Ramya’s tail wrapped around her wrist, a comforting gesture she did whenever she suddenly felt uncomfortable. It usually happened whenever someone pointed out that she was a Faunus. Hey, you could never be too sure with some people. “You train at a fancy Huntsman academy?”

Blondie smirked, finally turning her head to make eye contact with her. “Do you want my whole life story, kiddo?”

“Not really,” Ramya responded, dry. She hopped over a fallen log with ease, but Blondie simply lashed her whip and split it in half, allowing her to walk through the broken pieces. _Show-off._ “Just the interesting parts.”

“You city-types are always so interested in the idea of a Huntsman,” Blondie mused. “If you wanna know so much, why don't you just become one yourself?"

“You make that sound easier than it is.” Ramya could see the village now, people bustling about with no clue as to what had happened just two hundred feet away from them. “Anyways, what’s your name? Do real-life Huntsmen get cool undercover names like the ones in the movies?”

“The name’s Eirene,” the woman said, and Ramya could finally match a name to her face. Eirene looked towards the village pub, her hand poised on her whip. “I think we’re done here. Hope you have a nice stay in Carpo.”

She made her way towards the pub, Ramya staring at her back after her clear dismissal. Aww, man. She hadn’t even gotten to ask if she could take a look at her weapon. Though Ramya modded weapons for a living, she’d never gotten her hands on a Huntsman’s weapon; they were very particular with theirs, and did all of their modifications themselves.

After a second, she just shrugged her shoulders. _Eh, her loss._

Ramya soon found herself back at her cousin’s house, seeing him lounging in his hammock with a magazine covering his face. Some business magazine with the Silva Dust Company logo on the front. _Boring._

“You asleep?” She asked as she passed by, her tail trailing over the magazine before knocking it off his face. Hardik’s eyes were closed, but he wasn’t snoring like he typically did. “Oi.”

No response. He was definitely faking on her.

Ramya flicked his nose with her tail, and his face twitched. “I almost got killed by some Grimm, dude.”

Nothing.

“Fine. I’m gonna rebuild your bike and make it look cooler.”

Hardik suddenly jolted into a sitting position. “Do _not_.”

Her cousin had curly hair and golden eyes, not unlike the color of the sky when the sun set. Those golden eyes stared at her, wide, as she kicked his front door open and took off her shoes on the welcome mat. “Also, what was that about you getting killed by Grimm?”

“No, yeah, so I went poking around lookin' for scrap in that old cave you said’s by the lake.” Ramya flopped down onto the couch, reaching for the TV remote. Hardik raised an eyebrow at her position, and she rolled her eyes before moving her feet from the cushions to the floor. “No scrap. One big bear thing, though.”

Hardik studied her for a moment, his brows furrowed, before asking, “That was your first time seeing a Grimm, right?” 

“Looked a lot different from the fairy tales I used to read," Ramya commented, flipping through the channels. Bleh. Sports. Sports. Weather. More sports. TV sitcom that should’ve ended five years ago.

“How’d you escape?” Hardik suddenly poked her hard with his finger. “Did you break your Aura?”

“Aura’s good,” Ramya said, poking him right back. “Some Huntress saved me out there. Short, blonde, white jacket?”

“Oh! Eirene!” Hardik smiled. “She got Patches down from a tree for me, once."

“Speakin’ of that old bastard, where is he?” Ramya sat up, glancing over her shoulder and searching for any sign of the tortoiseshell cat. Normally the thing terrorized her every time she sat on the couch. He didn’t like her being in his territory, or something.

Hardik moved into the kitchen, presumably to start making dinner. “No more going into the woods, Rami. Your parents would kill me if—”

He stopped, suddenly. Ramya bit on her tongue, staring at the TV and trying not to look at him. The Forbidden Topic had been brought up, and the two of them sat in silence for a minute before skirting past it.

“...Chicken for dinner?” Hardik asked. Ramya nodded.

“ _Starving_. And I think I’m gonna pack up and head back to Vale this Friday, anyways. Love ya, cuz, but I need some city sights before I go mad here.”

“You see _one_ Grimm and suddenly you’re running back with your tail between your legs?” Hardik joked. Ramya shot him a glare. 

“I’m not a coward, I just miss my customers.” And participating in underground fight rings, but he didn’t need to know _that_. He worried about her enough. “Bet I’ve got piles of orders waitin’ for me back at the shop. Makoa said I should enjoy my vacay while I can.”

“Ooh,” Hardik said as he washed the ingredients for their dinner tonight. Even though Ramya couldn’t wait to get back to Vale, she was definitely going to miss having home-cooked meals. Pizza was great, but there was only so much cheesy goodness you could have before it became cheesy queasiness. “Customers? Like that Blisk fella?”

“Y’know, I’m still not convinced he’s _not_ a Huntsman,” Ramya said, thinking about one of her repeat customers—an older, grizzled guy named Kuben Blisk who kept bringing weapons for her to mod. He must’ve brought a dozen, by this point, and though she didn’t ask him any questions she sure did have a bunch. Like, _hey mate, do you just own a whole arsenal For Fun or are you some kind of Huntsman or what?_

“Probably just doesn’t wanna admit it." Hardik gestured towards the curtained window, where normally one could see the village pub. "All the Huntsmen I know are _real_ proud of their weapons.”

The sound of his knife dicing chicken against the cutting board was a little annoying to Ramya, so she turned the TV up some more. A mindless sports tournament with about a dozen people and a cheering crowd.

Maybe Ramya would try replicating that Huntress’s whip once she got back to her shop and got her hands on some proper tools. Though her specialty lied in modding weapons rather than creating them, she could always give it a go and try to hone her craft. She could sell the things once she got good enough, too! Another bit of coin in her pocket...

One day she’d start doing crazy shit like the Huntsmen weapons she’d heard of—sniper-scythe combinations and nunchucks that were also shotguns that were also a bo staff...

“Could you turn that down?” Hardik asked as he set a pot on the stove, making a whole racket of noise. Ramya considered turning it up more just to spite him. Should she be the Mean Cousin today?...No, he was cooking her food. She could be the Nice Cousin for just a bit.

Turning the TV down, she realized something as the noise in the kitchen died down for a minute as Hardik searched for something: there were loud noises coming from outside, noises that the TV had drowned out.

It seemed that her cousin heard these too, because they both stared at each other across the room as they tried to make sense of what was going on. Ramya got to her feet and approached one of the windows, parting the blinds just enough to peer outside. 

At first, she thought nobody was outside, which was strange, because the village square was usually bustling. She then realized she could see some people, but they were crouching in the shadows, looking terrified. Stepping away from the window, Ramya crossed the room to throw open the door, where she could now hear everything much clearer. It sounded like people were screaming.

There was also a strange orange glow outside, even though it was too early for the sun to have set that far in the horizon. Was that smoke she could smell? Had a fire started?

“Hardik,” Ramya said warily as she poked her head out the door, looking left and right to confirm what was going on—people were running past, heading for the trees. Parents clutched their children tight to their chest and others shouted their friends’ names, desperate, searching for them. And just over the noise of everyone screaming, she could hear familiar growls. “I think we need to get outta here.”

“What’s happening?” Her cousin demanded, joining her at the door. As if answering his question, a siren started blaring over the speakers positioned around the village square. “Fuck.”

“What’s that mean?” Ramya asked, turning to look at him, but his pale face answered her question before he could speak. _Grimm invasion._

The two of them split up, running into different sections of the house. Ramya burst into the guest room she’d been staying in, reaching for her bag and throwing it over her shoulder, because if she was going to be displaced it was going to be with a clean change of clothes. She ran back into the living room, putting on her shoes while glancing around outside, looking for any sign of red-eyed monsters. 

She couldn’t see any, but she could hear the sounds of weapons firing; the Huntsmen must be doing their job. She and her cousin didn’t have much to worry about except for the fire.

Hardik came out of his room, wearing a leather jacket with his helmet tucked beneath his arm. “We can take my bike, but I don’t have a helmet for you.”

“I’ll be fine.” Ramya stepped outside. The people she’d seen hiding earlier were long gone, and as she took a few steps away from their house she realized that the fire was just about on top of them. “Cuz, we _gotta_ get moving.”

Hardik stepped outside with her, gesturing to a shed about twenty feet to the left. “My bike’s in—”

He suddenly froze, and Ramya shot him a questioning look.

“Patches,” Hardik murmured.

“ _What_?”

“I’ve got to get Patches!” She watched her cousin turn on his heel and run back into his house. She was torn between yelling after him and calling him a dumbass, but she knew she also couldn’t with good conscience leave an animal behind in a fire. She shifted on her feet impatiently as she glanced around, searching for any sign of the Grimm, but none had found their way to this edge of the village yet, though that fire was inching ever closer. She didn’t like that one bit.

It had reached the trees, branches burning and thick smoke curling into the sky. Even though she had thought of the forest as inconvenient and annoying earlier, that didn’t mean she wanted it _gone_. This whole place would be char and ash soon. It was almost sad.

“Kid!” A familiar voice yelled, and Ramya looked over her shoulder to see Eirene running towards her, whip in hand and green eyes narrowed. “What’re you doing, can’t you hear the siren? Get out of here!”

“I’m waiting for my cousin!” Ramya said, but Eirene shook her head.

“No, get out. Your cousin will catch up with you later. Right now, you need to _run_.”

The ground shook right as Eirene finished saying that, and they both looked up to see a huge Grimm bearing down on them, having followed her. The Huntress charged forward and was soon little more than a white streak in the smoke-filled air as she dealt with it. Ramya watched her, amazed, before remembering that Hardik was still inside and turning back to face the house.

The trees surrounding it were burning now, and she suddenly had an awful sense of dread inside her. She tried to fight it off, remembering from something she’d read that Grimm were attracted to negative emotions, but she couldn’t help it; it was so, _so_ close, and Hardik was still nowhere to be found.

“Hardik,” she called, and when he didn’t show up, yelled even louder. “ _Hardik_!”

It pained her to say this, but she wanted him to forget about the damn cat and just come out here. Patches was a smart kitty, he probably smelled the smoke earlier and took off already. If he couldn’t find him yet, why hadn’t he just—

With a sickening _CRACK!,_ a burning branch broke off from one of the trees around his house, landing on the roof. Fire began to spread across its shingles. Flames from the other trees licked up the sides of the house, dangerously close to setting it completely ablaze.

No, no no no no _no_ this couldn’t be happening right now, not so soon after her mum and dad had—

After they had—

The heat in the air was nearly enough to singe the fur of her tail, but she still walked forward, in a slow, almost dream-like state as she approached the house. The entrance was unobstructed. She could run in, find Hardik, and then run back out.

Throwing her bag aside, Ramya took a deep breath before running inside. She checked every room downstairs, but Hardik was nowhere to be found. She stood at the base of the stairs, knowing it was probably unsafe to go up them with part of the house on fire, but he _had_ to be upstairs. He had to be.

“Hardik!” She yelled, but still received no response. She took one step up, and then another. The smoke in here was starting to get worse, clouding her vision. “This isn’t _funny_. Where are you?”

The house made a horrible creaking noise, and the hair on her arms stood up.

“Hardik!”

Crackling fire, heat, and then suddenly the ceiling was giving in.

Ramya leapt backwards with a shout, trying to keep an eye out for Hardik’s body possibly falling through from the upstairs, but the smoke and dust from the debris made it nigh-impossible to see anything, even with her heightened Faunus vision. More stomach-churning creaking, and then she found herself on the floor with pain spreading across her back.

The house had practically collapsed on top of her. The only reason that she wasn’t dead right now was because her Aura had taken the brunt of the damage for her, protecting her from any broken bones. Groaning, Ramya shifted from beneath the rubble, feeling wood and metal digging into her sides, scratching along her skin. 

The heat was unbearable, now, practically on top of her, and as she reached a hand out to grab at the leg of Hardik's couch in order to help pull her out from beneath the wreckage, she could see blood dripping from a cut on her arm. Fuck, her Aura had definitely been broken, then.

Ramya managed to shift out from the pile of wood by a couple of inches, but still remained largely stuck, her legs trapped even with all of her wriggling.

Well, this was just _fantastic_. First her parents, then Hardik, and now her. Fire had consumed her life, both literally and metaphorically, and _this_ was going to be its last vengeful act against her.

She curled her fingers into the floorboards beneath her, nails scratching against their surface, cutting clear paths in the ash and dust. She coughed, before drawing her symbol in the ash—leaving her last mark in this world, a little _R_ with its leg curled to represent her tail. She kind of wanted to cry, eyes stinging in the heat of the air, but she had to be stronger than that, because she was _Rampart,_ dammit. 

Rampart would soon be no more, though.

Any other time, she wouldn’t have rolled over and accepted death like this—but fire was raging and unforgivable, and didn’t care who it scorched in its path. All it craved was destruction, and she had been a firsthand witness of this too many times to count.

She lowered her head until her forehead was resting against the floorboards, exhaustion creeping through her. Figures she'd die before she could achieve anything truly cool in life.

Something wet suddenly hit the back of Ramya’s head. A droplet of water, followed by a couple more. She peeled her face from the ground, craning her neck in order to look up at the sky through the hole in the ceiling. It was raining, all of a sudden.

_What the..?_

It was not just raining, but actually pouring, in fact. The rain drenched everything around her until she was practically soaking wet, putting out most of the fire, too. The house groaned some more as someone’s boots thudded towards her—and then the couch was split in half with the crack of a whip. A familiar figure stood there, wild blonde hair and a once spotless white jacket now streaked with dirt.

“C’mon, kid,” Eirene said, reaching for some point behind Ramya, and then the weight was lifted off her legs. “Let’s get you moving.”

The rain had stopped, which didn’t make sense. First of all, where had it come from, and why had it only lasted long enough to put out the fire? Why had it rained so much? Was this some kind of shower unique to this part of the kingdom?

“Quit gaping.” Eirene grabbed Ramya’s upper arm, practically yanking her to her feet. Now that they were a little closer to one another, Ramya could see that her hair was out-of-sorts, no longer in its perfect curls, and she looked a little worn out. How bad was the invasion that an experienced Huntress like her looked like that? How many Grimm had she fought off?

And more importantly, where the fuck had that rain come from?

“W-was that—” Ramya stuttered weakly, pointing towards the sky and then back to Eirene. “Your Semblance?”

“You could say that.” Eirene glanced around. Hardik’s house was little more than rubble and smoke and blackened wood, all drenched in water. “Still want my life story?”

“No,” Ramya said, realizing that she still had no idea where Hardik was. “I want you to find my cousin.”

Eirene let out a huff of breath. “I don’t think—”

Ramya yanked herself out from the older woman’s grip, feeling tears burn in her eyes. _Don’t cry. You’re a big girl._

“You’re a Huntress,” Ramya said. “Find him.”

“You’re right,” Eirene said grimly. “I’m a Huntress, not search and rescue.”

So this lady wasn’t going to be of any help after all. Ramya turned away from her, now face-to-face with the ruins of Hardik’s house. Maybe he had scampered away already, or maybe his body was lying beneath all this crap. Whatever it was, she was going to find him, because he was her family, damn it, and she was tired of losing it.

She began to sift through the wreckage, ignoring the splinters she got and the soot coating her fingers. The tears were threatening to come again as a memory she tried hard to repress clawed its way back into her mind, bright oranges and reds and the heavy blacks that followed afterwards. Similar to the black on her hands right now.

She heard a sigh from behind her. Eirene placed her hand on her shoulder again, and Ramya glanced up.

“One of the Huntsmen here has a tracking Semblance,” Eirene said quietly. “I’ll go get them.”

Ramya bit on her lower lip, still trying to blink the wetness out of her eyes—and that’s when the large black mass behind Eirene came into focus.

Her hands stilled. “Eire—”

With a roar, the Grimm slashed its great claws at Eirene’s back, sending her flying. Ramya gasped, staggering away from the creature as she prepared for it to lunge at her now that Eirene was out of the way; it _must_ be able to sense her dread and fear and pain, hungry for more. Hungry for _her_.

She looked towards the other woman, seeing her get to her feet with a groan, not yet bleeding—she must still have Aura left, then. Ramya backed away from the Grimm, hoping to draw it nearer to her and allow Eirene to strike at it without getting noticed, but then the Huntress did something strange.

She raised her hands as white fire burned around her eyes, unlike anything Ramya had ever seen. Electricity crackled above. Was this another storm? Was that really the lady’s Semblance?

Eirene made a gesture, as if throwing, and the Grimm gave a shriek as lightning struck its back. It turned towards Eirene with a snarl, hackles raised, before giving a deep, guttural noise that might've been a howl.

 _Okay_ , Ramya thought to herself as static filled the air, backing away slowly. _I think I’m just gonna run away now._

She turned, moving to sprint like she had earlier, but there was yet another Grimm barreling right towards them. Ramya let out a scream and dove to the side, landing on the soft dirt-turned-mud from the earlier rain, but the Grimm ran straight past her towards Eirene instead, as though she were a beacon.

Fire suddenly blazed, a large explosion of flame, and Ramya crawled away from it quickly, eyes wide in disbelief because what the _fuck_ was happening? Was Eirene using Dust?

More Grimm howled, but none of them were paying Ramya any attention. Crawling out of the woods, their hackles raised, full of murderous intent. Oh, man. Was this _her_ fault? Had she brought them all here from her earlier escapade into the forest while looking for that cave?

Had Ramya caused all of this? Was she the reason Hardik was nowhere to be found? And what the _fuck_ was that Huntress doing?

Ramya peered around the corner, her jaw dropping at what she saw. Eirene was fucking _flying_ —like, floating in the air while that white fire around her green eyes continued to burn. Flame crawled up her arms, but it didn’t look like it was hurting her. In fact, it almost seemed like she was conjuring it.

Rain? Lightning? Fire? Literally _what_ was going on?

The Grimm kept coming at Eirene, leaping at her while she threw flames every time one came close. Twisting gracefully in mid-air, though she was dealing with about half a dozen of the bastards snapping at her heels, and it wouldn't be long before she was overwhelmed.

Ramya looked around frantically, searching for any sign of another Huntsman to come to Eirene’s aid, because six Grimm seemed like a lot and she didn’t know what state the woman’s Aura was in, but she could see none. She didn’t see any of the villagers, either. The other Huntsmen must have evacuated them, leaving Eirene to handle the Grimm by herself. She was outmatched.

Maybe...maybe Ramya could help.

 _Are you mad?_ A little voice inside her yelled as she stared at the display before her. _You don’t have a fucking weapon, or even a Semblance. How the hell are you supposed to help?_

The little voice was right. As much as she wanted to help, she couldn’t. She needed to run away, like she should have done in the first place, and find Hardik.

At the thought of her cousin those negative emotions she’d tried so hard to fight away came back, digging its claws into her skins, and she saw a pair of red eyes zoning in on her.

 _Fuck_.

It all happened so fast she wasn’t even sure what the hell had happened. One moment, a creature of Grimm was unhinging its jaw, ready to swallow her, and then in a flash of white she was lying on her back about twenty feet away from it, groaning. 

“What did I say,” Eirene hissed from above her, the fire around her eyes gone. “About getting _out_ o—”

The older woman must have a problem with being able to sense things behind her, because for the third time that day Ramya found herself shouting out. This time, though, Eirene didn’t turn around in the nick of time or get away without a scratch. This time, her blood soaked into Ramya’s already drenched clothes, and her body was thrown to the side, rolling across the ground.

The Grimm pounced on her, one by one, as though they couldn’t wait to get a bite out of a Huntress. Ramya clenched her teeth as she stared at the scene before her, biting back her screams as the Grimm circled Eirene’s limp form.

There was the sound of a gunshot, and the Grimm all turned their heads towards the source of the noise, appearing almost curious instead of monstrous. They moved as one towards the figures standing in the horizon—three of them, probably all Huntsmen who had returned to aid Eirene.

When the Grimm were a safe distance away Ramya scrambled towards the woman, her hands shaking as she turned her over to see the blood soaking through her once-pristine white jacket.

“Nah, you good,” Ramya mumbled, unconvincing even to her own ears. “You’re not gonna die. You can’t die.”

Fuck, _she_ had caused this, hadn’t she? She’d led the Grimm here, and she’d run back into the house even though she’d been told to run away, and she’d stuck around when she had the opportunity to get the fuck out of here but she’d wanted to _watch_ , just like she had earlier in the woods, and—

“Hey,” Eirene coughed, voice strained as she reached for Ramya’s hand, getting blood on her palms. Her green eyes found Ramya’s, once bright, but quickly dimming. “I know what you’re thinking, but this wasn’t your fault.”

“How can it not be?” Ramya whispered, fingers curling into the front of her jacket. She didn't know this woman, but she still felt somehow responsible. “I brought them here, but—but I’m gonna fix it, yeah? I’m sure one of these—I’m sure one of these guys has a healing Semblance, or—”

“Do you believe in destiny?” Eirene cut her off. Ramya stared at her, wondering what she was going on about, before shaking her head. “Well, I do. And I think it was destiny that I met you today.”

“...I got you killed."

“No, you didn’t. I got me killed.” Eirene let her head fall back onto the ground, heaving a great, shuddering sigh. “Huh. Look at the stars.”

Ramya followed her line of sight, taking in the mass of stars dotting the sky, a sight she hardly saw in the city. The moon hung high in the sky, big and beautiful and broken—and it was the last thing she saw before everything was covered in a blinding light, and her entire body was burning.

Groaning, Ramya pushed herself away from Eirene as she felt a pulsing, pounding headache drive itself through her skull. Wind was whipping around her, pulling her hair loose from its ponytail as it stirred the leaves above her. She reached up to cradle her head, but froze at what she saw through her blurred vision—flames crawling up her arms.

With a shout Ramya held her hands out in front of her as the heat inside of her reached its peak, before suddenly it was gone. The flame was no longer there either. It must have been a part of her imagination after everything that had happened to her today—that's what she wanted to tell herself, but there was a thrumming sensation beneath her skin that she couldn't ignore.

The fuck just happened?

Ramya turned her hands over, looking at her knuckles, before studying her bloodstained palms again. There really was no fire, or signs of burns. Nothing.

She looked from her hands to Eirene, who was staring blankly at the sky, the stars reflected in her eyes. It was clear to her that she was dead, which made her feel...off.

She got to her feet, reaching up to put her hair back in its ponytail. She could see one of the Huntsmen running towards her, looking concerned. As she finished tying her hair up she looked to the sky, wondering if she would see a shooting star to represent Eirene's soul, like her mum used to say would happen whenever someone died a warrior's death.

There were none, of course. That had just been a silly fairy tale, after all, and Ramya didn't believe in fairy tales.

* * *

“Ramya!” 

She looked up from where she was seated, seeing Hardik run towards her with Patches held close to his chest. She stood up and allowed him to throw one of his arms around her in a hug, burying his nose in shoulder.

“I thought you’d—! I mean, I looked out the window, and the Grimm—so I ran out the back way, but then I thought you might’ve gone in the house after me, and—”

“I’m _fine_ , ya git,” Ramya said, though she didn’t sound very convincing and she knew it. The Huntsmen had taken her to the village where the rest of the refugees were all staying, stationed at the medical center and waiting for news on the state of their village. Things weren't looking too great, if she was being honest.

“ _Please_ never do that again,” Hardik said.

“I’m not the one who ran inside the house for a cat.”

Patches gave a meow, as if displeased with her.

Hardik took a step back, looking her over as if checking for any sign of injury. She’d changed into the clean clothes packed in her bag, so there were no traces of ash or soot or blood on her. He didn’t know what had happened, and she was fine with keeping it that way.

“...You’ll probably want to get back to Vale, soon,” he commented, and she nodded, wrapping her tail around her wrist. That sounded good. She needed...a drink. Or two. Maybe a dozen.

“I’ll just take the train tomorrow.”

They both looked to the side as a figure approached them, boots thudding heavily against the floor—one of the Huntsmen of the village, someone with an accent and a mask. 

“Miss Parekh,” they said, before nodding respectfully towards Hardik. “Mister Lal.”

Ramya crossed her arms. “You are..?” 

“You may call me Bloodhound,” they responded. Ramya looked from their mask to the axe hanging from their waist. “I wanted to have a meeting with Miss Parekh before she left.”

_Have a meeting?_

Ramya looked down at her tail, suddenly self-conscious, before shifting it out of sight. She couldn’t show any signs of guilt, because then what if she was like, suspected for murder or something? What if they called Eirene’s death into question? That sounded really stupid but she’d watched a _lot_ of crime dramas and—

“Does she have to?” Hardik asked for her, and she was grateful to him. Bloodhound shifted their stance, voice softening as they gave their reply.

“She does not _have_ to, but I would greatly appreciate it.”

“I’m...sorry, but I’m really tired,” Ramya said, avoiding meeting the eyes of their mask and instead staring down at her sneakers, scrubbed clean from their earlier mess. “I wanna go to bed, and then get on the first train to Vale tomorrow.”

There was silence. For a moment, she wondered if Bloodhound would protest, or ask her once again to speak, but this time with less wiggle room. Surprisingly, though, they just placed their hand on her shoulder in a comforting manner, and said,

“Of course. This must have been quite the day for you. Get some rest, and _góða ferð_.”

They walked away from the two of them, though she wore she could somehow feel their eyes on her despite their turned back. She looked from them to Hardik, who looked like he was bursting with things to say. When she raised an eyebrow, he hissed,

“Why do they want to talk to you?”

“Don’t know,” Ramya lied, looking down at her hands. She kept doing this, half-expecting to see the flames again, but every single time she checked they appeared normal. It was almost disappointing. “...Well, I wasn’t lying about being tired. I’m gonna take a nap.”

“Right.” Hardik sounded unsure. “Uhm...is there anything you wanna talk about, Rami?”

“No,” she said, curt, but flashed him a smile just in case she came across as too rude or suspicious. “Sorry. Just tired.”

"Okay." Hardik grabbed hold of one of Patches's paws and used it to wave at her. "G'night."

Ramya joined a bunch of the other refugees in one of the halls, grabbing a sleeping bag from a volunteer before finding a bare spot to lay it down in. She kicked her shoes off before crawling into it, allowing her hands to rest right in front of her face so that she could keep an eye on them while drifting off.

Just in case. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so this is a soft rwby au if that wasn't clear enough and by that i mean i just use some basic ideas from rwby plus the setting there's not gonna be any grand salem plot or anything i just wanted lesbians with magical maiden powers. here's 2 of the basic concepts that i won't go into much detail in the actual story :
> 
> faunus: basically humans with one unique animal trait (tail/ears/teeth/fangs) and other mild animal traits like better vision/hearing/smell etc. rampart is a monkey faunus with a tail because Haha Grease Monkey pun
> 
> aura: just think of it like your shields in apex. takes all the damage without actually harming YOU until you break it. then every damage you take actually does hurt you
> 
> things like dust and semblances will be explained in due time :3 if you're interested in more of this au leave a comment ! i've got other stuff to work on also but if enough people are interested i'll try to work on this also more frequently


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